The Independence Champs were a Class-D minor league baseball team based in Independence, Kansas that played in the Oklahoma–Arkansas–Kansas League (OAK League) in 1907.
The team formed in 1906 as the Independence Coyotes, in the Kansas State League. They moved to the OAK League when the KSL folded after the 1906 season. The OAK League folded after the 1907 season, with Independence and fellow OAK League members Bartlesville and Muskogee moving to the new Oklahoma–Kansas League for the 1908 season.
Multiple notable players spent time with the team, including Chick Brandom, Drummond Brown, Dick Crutcher, Danny Friend and Marc Hall.BR Minors
Timeline
Year(s) # Yrs. Team Level LeagueAffiliate1896 1 Independence IndependentKansas State League None1906 1 Independence Coyotes Class DNone1907 1 Independence Champs Oklahoma-Arkansas-Kansas LeagueNone1908 1 Independence Jewelers Oklahoma-Kansas LeagueNone1911 1 Independence Packers Western AssociationNone1921 1 Independence Producers Southwestern LeagueNone1922–1923 2 Class CNone1924 1 Class DNone1925, 1928–1932 6 Class C Western AssociationNone1947–1950 4 Independence YankeesClass DKansas-Oklahoma-Missouri LeagueNew York Yankees1952 1 Independence Browns St. Louis Browns
References